[Elecraft] KPA500 - just 500 watts?

[N2TK, Tony]

Hi John,
I agree with some of what you said. There are times, especially on the lower
bands, even with an antenna with gain that signals are very weak whether on
CW or SSB. Sometimes 100W just doesn't make it happen. Having the capability
to go to 1500W in these situations may make the difference between working a
"new one" and not working the "new one".
Many times we are at the mercy of the DX that we want to work. So having the
ability of using higher power that we are allowed to use may make all the
difference in the world. 

Usually in the winter my amp is ON even though I normally don't use it for
casual operating. The darn 3 minute warm up has caused me to miss a new one
such as Zone 19 on Topband a few years back when I heard him and could not
work him on 160M with 100W. By the time the amp cycled ON he faded away. The
amp is in the basement so no added heat or noise in the shack and most of
the power while idling is for the filaments in the two tubes.
This is one reason I would like to have a 1500W 160-6M solid-state amp in
the basement. I could leave it off till I really needed it.

By the way, there is nothing magic that you need a 6db difference to make
the difference between making or not making a contact. When the DX is at the
noise level much less than 6db gain could make all the difference. 

73,
N2TK, Tony

-----Original Message-----
From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net
[mailto:elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of John Ragle
Sent: Tuesday, January 25, 2011 11:21 AM
To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] KPA500 - just 500 watts?

1 S-unit is about 6 dB. To get an S-unit improvement over 500 watts 
(output) would require about 2 kW of output power. In comparison, even 
the simplest directional antenna is capable of producing at least 6 dB 
"gain." It seems to me that the QRO philosophy of "Stomp 'em into the 
Dust" is a poor substitute for operating skill. Moreover, it is probably 
even illegal in the sense that it constitutes deliberate interference 
with another's signals and a disdain for the rule that says that only 
enough power is to be used to maintain effective communication.

There is a connection between this attitude and the impulse to 
communicate by voice methods, even to the resurgence of interest in 
broadcast quality AM transmission. These are all wasteful of spectrum 
space and energy resources. Digital modes are surely capable of more 
effective DX'ing with much lower power levels, and attention to antenna 
design and operating conditions would seem to be much more thoughtful 
and professional than the CB-like attitude which is now found on the 
phone bands. BPSKnn is suitable for chatting, and if your bag is 
"hello-goodbye," take a look at JT65-HF and what is possible with only a 
few watts of TX power.

John Ragle -- W1ZI -- with almost 65 years of licensed experience in 
amateur radio...

=====

On 1/25/2011 9:35 AM, Lee Buller wrote:
> Got my flame suit on....

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